The Future 116 Precinct in South Queens

MAYOR DE BLASIO, NYPD UNVEIL NEW 116TH PRECINCT STATIONHOUSE TO AID WITH RESPONSE TIME AND JURISDICTION LINES IN SOUTHEAST QUEENS

NEW YORK––Mayor Bill de Blasio and the New York City Police Department today unveiled the site for the new 116th Precinct located at 242-40 North Conduit Avenue in the Rosedale neighborhood of Queens. The siting of the future 116th Precinct is a decades in the making accomplishment, born out of calls from local communities to cut down on response times and better allocate public safety resources across the 105th Precinct’s vast geography.

“Thanks to the tireless efforts of the NYPD, New York City is the safest big city in America. Every New York City neighborhood deserves the same quality of service and safety we’ve come to expect from the NYPD. That is why we are making unprecedented investments in establishing high-quality precincts,” said Mayor de Blasio. “The future 116th Precinct will help reduce current response times in Southeast Queens and expand coverage throughout the community.”

The 105th Precinct is the fifth largest in the City, covering 12.43 square miles and 354 miles of roadway in Southeast Queens. The new 116th Precinct will assume over half of the 105th Precinct’s territory. While the citywide average emergency response time is approximately seven minutes, the 105th’s response time averages closer to nine minutes. The addition of the 116th Precinct, which will be located at the 105thPrecinct’s satellite building, will allow officers to respond more quickly and maintain a significant police presence in the southernmost part of the jurisdiction. Last March, the NYPD created a satellite precinct to assist with its coverage and service in the 105th Precinct, which included 18 new officers, two new sergeants and a 24-hour operation to aid with the case loads and stretched jurisdictions.

The NYPD will conduct an analysis to determine the precinct’s eventual borders. The study will consider factors such as geography, population, 911/311 calls, crime and quality of life issues with the goal of increasing services while distributing workload as equitably as possible. In connection with this analysis, stakeholders – including residents and elected officials – will be consulted.

Staffing levels and operating costs for the 116thPrecinct will be determined as the process moves along, boundaries are determined, designs are completed and construction gets underway.

“We are excited to be here in Queens as we announce the site of the new 116 Precinct,” said NYPD Commissioner James P. O’Neill. “This new investment will reduce response times and inevitably enable us to even further reduce crime.”

Mayor de Blasio and Police Commissioner O’Neill also announced that the City will invest $1.3 million to retrofit all 72 command vehicles following the death of Officer Miosotis Familia, who tragically lost her life while on duty in the Bronx. The retrofits will be funded by a combination of City Tax Levy funds and asset forfeiture funds.

Following the tragic deaths of two NYPD officers in late 2014, the City allocated $6.8 million to outfit the NYPD’s 3,813 patrol cars with bullet-resistant panels to protect the doors. To date 2,100 vehicles have been installed with bullet-resistant door panels and the City is on track to have bullet-resistant door panels installed in every patrol vehicle by end of 2017. After an initial bullet-resistant window pilot program, additional funding of $10.4 million dollars was allocated for the installation of bullet-resistant window inserts for patrol vehicles. The first 500 NYPD patrol car bullet-resistant window insert installations are expected to be completed this month.

Queens Borough President Melinda Katz said: “For decades, the families of Rosedale, Laurelton, Brookville and Springfield Gardens had long identified the need for a precinct closer to the neighborhoods it protects and serves. The new 116th Precinct stationhouse will help fulfill that need by improving response times and having a more proactive presence within its jurisdiction. It will soon become a reality thanks to the communities’ advocacy and the substantial investments by Mayor de Blasio, which also include millions to better equip the NYPD with ballistic protection.”

Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown said, “Today’s announcement that the City has selected the site of the new NYPD 116th Precinct in Southeast Queens is indeed welcome news. It will result in greater efficiency, bring our police officers closer to the communities that they are sworn to serve and better address community concerns. I commend Mayor de Blasio and Commissioner O’Neill for making it happen.”

Senator Leroy Comrie said, “The 116th Precinct is the result of persistent, grassroots advocacy. As we continue the process of finally establishing the 116th, my elected colleagues and I will work to ensure that the needs of the Laurelton, Rosedale, and Brookville communities are met by the city. I commend Mayor de Blasio and the NYPD for prioritizing this long awaited project, and I thank Council Members Richards and Miller for their tremendous efforts in the Council to bring us to this point.”

“After nearly four decades, the new 116th precinct is one step closer to becoming reality. This precinct will reduce response times and help keep the residents of the 29th Assembly District safe” said Assembly Member Alicia Hyndman. “This was a team effort, I’d like to thank Mayor de Blasio, NYPD Commissioner O’Neill, my colleagues in government and mostly the civic leaders who fought long and hard to make this happen.”

“The entire community is excited about the opening 116th Precinct,” said Assembly Member Clyde Vanel. “The Mayor has long-recognized the local precinct’s response time and community’s need for additional resources that is needed to ensure the safety in the area. The Mayor promised us a new precinct, and now we have it!”

“With an area of 12.7 miles, the officers of the 116thpatrol one of the largest precincts in the city” said Assembly Member David Weprin. “The new 116th Precinct Stationhouse will allow for faster response times in our community while providing for safer conditions for our dedicated NYPD officers. I applaud Mayor Bill de Blasio for his commitment to the public safety of Southeast Queens.”

“Today’s announcement marks a new chapter in the history books for Southeast Queens,” said Council Member Donovan Richards. “For nearly 40 years, communities in the 105th precinct have asked for a new precinct only to see their request fall on deaf ears. The new 116th precinct will help improve response times, and most importantly, ensure that the quality of life in our neighborhoods, that we all fight so hard to maintain, is both sustained and improved. I’d also like to commend Mayor de Blasio and Commissioner O’Neill for their dedication to officer safety with a critical investment in bulletproof vehicles.”

“I thank Mayor Bill de Blasio for bringing a new police precinct to Eastern Queens,” said Council Member Barry S. Grodenchik. “With today’s announcement, community and civic leaders are truly seeing decades of advocacy come to fruition. I am so pleased to have collaborated with my colleagues in government on this important accomplishment for public safety.”

Clive Williams, Chair of Queens Community Board 13 stated, “Community activism for this precinct has been unrelenting for over 40 years. The approximately 150,000 residents of Rosedale, Laurelton and Springfield Gardens, with few exceptions welcome the new 116th precinct. Small businesses, especially retailers, will be happy for the increase sense of security. Elected officials who have supported this project, should enjoy the satisfaction of responding to the needs of their communities.”

Kim Lawton, President of Spring Jam Block Association said, “The installation of the 116th precinct in the Springfield Gardens section of Southeast Queens is a historical and monumental win for the community at large. It was a long time coming, but we can assured a change is going to come.”

Judy Rivera of Federated Blocks of Laurelton said, “This is a community that believes the fight for the creation of the 116th precinct is worth the effort, even when it takes 40 years. Thank you Mayor Bill de Blasio, for I am thrilled to be live to see it.”